Sakura Of The Sorrows
by redheaded-demon
Summary: A prophecy made about Sakura when she was just born tells of how she will be the death of three of Konoha's heroes, spin off of Deirdre of the Sorrows, First fic, Read and review please! KakaSaku, don't like, don't read.


To say that Sakura was a welcome child would be an exaggeration. Her parents, whoever they were, were firm believers in the super-natural and other-world, and so two days after her birth they did go to a soothsayer of sorts, famed throughout the land for her prowess in the dark arts as well as for her accuracy.

It can be effectively said that this soothsayer ruined whatever relationship Sakura might have had with her parents, for her prophecy was so devastating that her parents, being cautious and superstitious, wanted nothing to do with their only child. So Sakura was given over to the care of her aunt. Haruno Ren was a spontaneous and what could only be described as a mad person. She hated responsibility of any kind, and was a ninja in the service of Konoha so she never had much time for her niece. Nevertheless, she looked after her as best she could. It was Ren that hid the prophecy that, the undoubtedly fake, soothsayer had made of her adopted daughter. It was her that hid from her niece the fact that she was to be the death of three of Konohas heroes, and that she was to be most hated by her village. It was ultimately Ren that, seeking to keep her niece-come-daughter out of trouble and heart-ache, promised her to someone as soon as she came of age. And it was Ren that witnessed the first part of the prophecy come true.

* * *

Ren watched as Sakura sat in the simple sitting room of her three-roomed cottage in the woods beside Konoha. She watched as the girl's large brow furrowed as she puzzled over some homework set by her academy teacher. Her green emerald eyes, identical to those of her father, were glazed and she had a fistful of pink hair in her right hand while she chewed on a pencil. It was Sakura's thinking pose and one that Ren knew well. Afterall, it was she whom Sakura had gotten that pose from. Ren coughed lightly to alert Sakura to her presence and the girl glanced up, delighted at her beloved aunt's return.

'I missed you!' she squealed as she threw herself at Ren.

Ren caught her and spun her around in a wide arc, her muscles and wounds protesting from the exertion. There was a wide gash on her thigh that had to be seen to immediately, but Ren was just not bothered at the moment. Home was always her first stop, it had never been the hospital.

'I missed you too, my cherry blossom. Are you enjoying the snow? Have you made up with Ino-pig yet?'

Sakura pouted and shook her head jerkily.

'We're both in love with the same boy, No way am I making up with her over this. She takes every opportunity she gets with him and she does it just to annoy me.'

Ren rolled her grey eyes and flicked her pink hair out of her face. Though cropped, it was in need of another cut.

'Mates before dates, my dear. Besides, you and I both know that that...boy is dead inside. He isn't worth it. Trust me, you can do better than that. I know his type.'

Sakura's scowl deepened even further and it almost made Ren burst out with laughter. That look only served to make her look even more like a demented monkey. Ren covered her twitching mouth with her hand and made her way through to the small but cosy dark teak kitchen. She heard the soft pitter-patter of her niece's footsteps as she rounded the corner and slid the door open. Ren winced as she fished around in the almost bare cupboards for her trusty first aid kit. Her seeking fingers caught the smooth plastic handle amd she eased it out of its hiding place. Grimacing with the effort of extending her arm, Ren's sure fingers let go of the handle and the green box clattered on the wooden floor.

'Shit!' Ren cursed, massaging her shoulder. Her face was screwed up with pain and her mind was filled with nothing but wrecking agony. Agony that vanished the second she heard a gasp behind her.

'Fuck, Sakura it was just a swear-word. Get over it.' She snapped, turning to face her niece. Ren's face froze as she caught sight of Sakura's expression. The girl's face was white as a sheet, and her eyes were wide as saucers. She looked like she had just seen a ghost. She was gawping at the garden.

Puzzled, Ren glanced in the direction of her Sakura's line of vision. A smile touched her lips as she saw a crane with grey, almost silver, plumage and a red crown pick it's way delicately across the snow. It barely made any footprints and made no sound as it crept towards the house.

'Hey, hey, Saku?,' Ren whispered, crouching down to her level, 'Relax, it's a blessing. I have to say you have some eagle eyes to see that bird in this weather.'

Sakura gulped and didn't look away from the bird.

'...had a dream...,' she croaked.

'You had a dream?,' Ren rolled her eyes, 'Saku, dreams are normal. We all dream, Christ, I even dream.'

'...I had a dream about a man..A man I loved, I think.'

Ren's eyes flashed and she gripped Sakura's forearms in her fists.

'Tell me about the man, Sakura.' She said, emotionless. It was times like these she was grateful that her specialty was memory jutsu. Thank the gods she had relations within the Yamanaka clan.

Sakura frowned with concentration, trying to conjure up the image she had seen in her dream.

'He's very tall, pale, almost like the snow. He has one red eye...I think. And his hair is silver, not grey, Ren, silver.'

Ren's smile was forced and she hugged Sakura close to her with her bad arm while making the hand signs with her other.

'It was just a dream Saku,' she whispered as the girl stiffened and fell against her body. She almost screamed with the pain. 'that....is all..it ever was..'

She didn't know why, but she looked up and out into the garden once more. The crane had stopped it's trek to the house and it's gaze was trained on the girl that the almost identical woman hed protectively against her body. The bird almost seemed to be glaring at Ren. It extended its wings and flapped them threateningly. Ren hissed lowly and the crane flapped its wings once more before stalking off into the forest from whence it came.


End file.
